


The Return

by AnimaTori



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Book: The Island, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-16 18:07:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28586220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnimaTori/pseuds/AnimaTori
Summary: Jester's been around the block a few hundred times. A new cubic world every so often, changing occasionally from a nice, peaceful game full of villager trading to a violent hellscape where every single mob's attack could be your last. This situation's entirely different though, and it's doubtful anyone before Jester experienced the same thing.It's a wonder they're still alive.





	1. A Trip to The End

I'm finally getting my first task. I've worked for this specific job for years, and nobody really understood why.

My job is Search and Rescue; going off into the vast, unending world around our village to locate lost beings, known as Players, and bring them back to the village. There have been a few that we've taken in. Most came in barely breathing, severely injured from days or weeks alone in the wild. Others come in telling stories of their heroics - well, not really "telling," as Players don't speak - detailing how they've killed a dragon in the "End" or even the mythical Wither, and often hoisting prizes to prove it. A black and violet egg from the Dragon, and a bright beacon for the Wither. 

But, I've heard these stories several times over and can't really believe there are dozens of dragons and hundreds of Withers out in the world. And yet with every story I've read from the Players, they always come back with the same prizes as the very first who told their story. Steve, he was called; a legendary hero, and the reason the Search and Rescue job was even created. Steve had fallen down into a massive ravine from an earthquake decades beforehand, no tools and no access to wood or food.

With our most skilled crafters and miners, they were able to save him. From that moment on, the leaders of the village decided to begin the Search and Rescue branch. As the years went on, we were required to go to more and more places. A few groups from a few years ago had to go into the Nether to save some Players. Those who go to the Nether aren't expected to work afterwards, as it's a deadly hellscape and few make it out alive.

"Folks, we've received news from one of our traveling traders; a Player has been trapped in the world known as the End," said the commander, followed by an echoing chorus of one question - "It's REAL?!" He put up his hand, and the group fell silent. "I know, none of the Leaders believed it was real either. However, this journal was recovered from the underground stronghold we discovered a few months ago." He held up a tattered journal, clearly several decades old.

"In the journal," he continued, "it lists a long journey to find that location and defeat the Ender Dragon. It also, thankfully, lists how to enter the End. The Player likely did this to make sure they wouldn't forget. We've already gotten the supplies we need, and are prepared for anything we might face. You've made sure to say goodbye to your families?" The whole group nodded in unison. "Good. We aren't sure what to find in the End. Let's move out!"

\--

The whole trip to the stronghold took several days on it's own, as there was no waterways or rail systems to take. On the way, the commander told us about the Player we were searching for. Their name was Jester, and they were a young faun girl with short brown hair and large ram horns. I say young, but they're young like I am rather than like a child. In their early 20's at least. She's been traveling for quite some time, and this clearly isn't her first journal.

When we reached the stronghold, the Commander told us that our path was marked with a long line of wood planks, and that we shouldn't stray too far off the path, as the rest of the stronghold wasn't actually lit. It was a cautious walk through the hold, but there was nothing around for us to protect ourselves from. Then we reached the room with the way through to to the end. In it was three different pools of lava, a ring of strange blocks none of us had seen before, and a small cage - sitting on top of a set of stairs - lit with two different torches. The inside of the cage blazed red-hot on it's own, but we knew better than to remove the torches.

"This is the entrance to the End. Once we go through here, there's only one way out, but it's not death." A few of the more nervous recruits chuckled. "There's another portal surrounded by giant obsidian towers. We'll return through there. Be cautious, however, as there are Enderman quite literally everywhere. Look towards the ground or into a comrades back at all times. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!"

The commander turned on his heel and began placing eyes of Ender into the strange blocks; they clearly belonged there, as every eye caused a brief bell sound. When the final eye was placed, there was a clap of thunder and a void of stars erupted in the middle. Then, he stepped straight in.

A few of the new recruits panicked, but noticed he wasn't in the lava below. Their only experience was with Nether portals, through which you could walk without immediately teleporting through. This one seemed to be an instant transportation. Then the rest of them gradually found their way through. 

The End itself was a beautiful land, in a sort of "colorless, emotionless" type of way. We were standing on a small platform of still-warm obsidian, and a well-lit bridge extended from it to the large island. A quick glance off the edge told everyone that this place was completely different than what we were used to. There was only one massive land mass, and it was floating in a star-speckled void. The bridge, however, was sturdy and familiar cobblestone, so it was calming to be on what everyone recognized as solid ground.

We marched on, avoiding the eyes of the Endermen as we walked. They were notorious for wiping out whole parties of unprepared recruits in the early days. The commander pointed out a distant bridge reaching into the sky; at the end of it was a flickering light surrounded by what appeared to be bedrock. "That's our target. The journal says it started acting up some time around Jester's second visit." He handed everyone a single ender pearl, "And this is how we'll be getting in. The portal is so small that this is the only thing that can fit through there. Even if we were to crawl through the gaps, nobody would fit."

I've always hated the feeling of traveling via teleporting. It's always made me nauseous, that sharp pull at the gut as you're suddenly launched to a different spot in the world. Upon reaching the portal, the commander laid a single eye of Ender in the gap between the tiny pyramids of bedrock. It immediately solidified into a portal, similar to the one we entered the End through. Upon a closer inspection, it appeared to act like a hole in a wall showing another room.

After making our way through the portal, the commander gave those of us who got nauseous a moment to regain our composer, and upon closer inspection, this place was more full of life. Tall tree-like plants grew in massive troves, and a tall building rose in the distance. The commander began the search by calling out for Jester, and after getting a short ways away, everyone else began to join in. I happened to be the first one to notice the cores of the strange fruit littering the ground in a specific spot. Surprisingly enough, it was quite a ways away from the building.

After one of the recruits got too close, however, we realized why. A strange box opened up and spit something out at her, and she started lifting off the ground. Luckily, she was underneath the edge of the building, and after a minute or so the effect seemed to wear off.

None of us were sure how long this trip took, but we had packed plenty of provisions for ourselves. Time seemed to not move in this world, or moved so fast that perhaps our own village was already burned to the ground, decimated by time. The Enderman walked around us the whole time, unbothered by our presence, occasionally making their strange sounds.

Then someone saw her.

She was a small figure, hunched over near one of the plants. I noticed, however, that their hair was actually pure white, almost glowing in the dim world. "Jester!" I cried out, hoping I was loud enough for her to hear. She flinched violently, whipping her head around to see what had said that name she hadn't heard in years. 

Her face was split almost down the middle; deep black-violet skin on her right side, contrasted by the neon-yellow eye glowing in the darkness. Her right horn had also grown longer, curving differently than the other. When she stood, I noticed that it wasn't just her face. It was the whole right side of her body that seemed corrupted by this world. 

But she kept getting taller, and I finally noticed the long black leg extending half it's length, both joints heavily bent to keep their balance. 

They've clearly been here longer than a _few_ years.


	2. A Trip to the Nether

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jester's backstory.

What a pretty little world! Jester thought to herself as it began to load in. Large spruce trees, a few pigs and cows, and some small ponds dotted here and there. No time to waste, she signed to herself, getting straight to work chopping the logs of the nearest spruce tree. They ran themself through the motions; one entire tree, crafting table, pickaxe, stone tools. This took roughly the entire day, just to get the simple stone pickaxe and axe.

She picked up her tools, blocked herself into her small mine, and got to work. It didn’t take her very long, however, to mine directly into a cave. Knowing they were unprepared, Jester decided to mine in a different direction, straight left. Are you serious? Jester thought as, not more than 100 blocks from the entrance, they mined into another cave. More than likely, it was just another piece of the same cave. Blocking the entrance with a piece of dirt, they turned and mined in the exact opposite direction. And found another cave. 

This cave, however, looked more like a ravine. I’m totally not prepared for this, Jester signed absent-mindedly while walking back to the entrance. They checked the entrance to their miniature mining stairway and noticed it was finally morning. Hopping out of the hole, she scurried away, keeping a close eye out for Creepers and Spiders. Both were the only things that could survive past sunrise. Unless, of course-

An arrow whistled past Jester’s head and landed near her feet. Whipping around, they noticed a Skeleton hiding from the sunlight under one of the trees. She pulled out her axe and took it down, but just a moment later she heard the hiss. A Creeper had snuck up on her while she was killing the skeleton. They jumped back just in time to avoid instant death by the explosion, but it did further Jester’s damage. They hobbled back into their hole, chowing down on as many sweet berries necessary to heal up. 

This is going to take forever, they thought, the berries barely filling them up and healing almost nothing before they got hungry again. That really was the only benefit to the spruce forests, aside from having the 2nd nicest wood color available in each world. They always had Sweet Berries, which made for a decent pinch food. They refused to use sweet berries at all times, but they were good for preserving the better food Jester knew she’d have in the future.

Once fully healed, Jester came above ground, and a quick glance around showed that all of the hostile creatures had left. It was time to finally get to work on a real house. They started with a little clearing next to a small pond, coming up with a plan to utilize the pond for farming. A quick 7 by 3 block interior to fit just the necessities and a lot of chests, with nice log corners and plank walls, the finishing touch was a nice stone floor. 

With the house built, Jester went straight to making torches, as they couldn’t see anything and didn’t want hostile creatures showing up too close to home. 

Sitting and waiting out the night was probably Jester’s least favorite thing to do. Wandering around their small house with nothing but a furnace, a crafting table, and a singular double-wide chest. Staring out the small impromptu window, they watched the rising horizon.

Based on the pace she was moving, it seemed this would be an interesting time for Jester to work towards the final goal. Her mind began to drift.

She remembered bits and pieces of the previous worlds she’d been in this whole time. A small world centered on an island with only chickens and turtles to inhabit the landmass until she came along. Hundreds of blocks away was the nearest land mass, and her first underwater monument. She couldn’t remember ever reaching the Nether or the End in that world. 

A small village next to a long river, full of diamonds and obsidian; their home base had been centered in the nearby Dark Oak forest, made out of naturally grown trees clustered closely together. She didn’t remember anything past finishing a large portion of her base. 

She even remembered a little bit of one of her first worlds. This was well before the End had even been discovered, before bees and wraiths and pillagers and even Dark oak trees. It was a simpler time back then, but that didn’t make living then any easier; there were still creepers and zombies to worry about. The only good thing about these worlds is that it seemed death wasn’t a permanent problem. The only way for someone to know, though, was to die at least once. 

Her head popped up off her hand when she noticed the sun was rising. She was surprised, as there wasn’t a single skeleton, zombie, or creeper she could see from the window. Turning around, she checked the one facing the setting horizon and her farm. There wasn’t anything in that direction either, not as far as she could see. That’s pretty rare, Jester thought to themself, knowing full well the two torches they placed before it got dark couldn’t have been enough light to keep everything away.

Upon opening one of their doors, they got their answer. A creeper was standing a little ways away, managing to fit into the blind spot of the two windows. Jester quickly slammed her door and went to exit through the other one. Nothing they could see from that door, so they scurried off away from their house to prevent any surprise creeper explosions. 

Sword in hand, Jester decided it would be a good idea to clear out that single creeper she’d seen earlier. She got close enough for it to notice her, and gradually attempted to kill it. She didn’t quite get it, however, as despite her speed to back away it still blew up. Then she heard another hiss behind her; it exploded before she could even turn around to see it. Injured, Jester raced back into their house, stuffing her face with sweet berries once again. I need to find some sheep, she told herself as the berries very gradually brought her back to full health.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It took quite the expedition to find a small group of sheep. By this point, Jester already had enough iron to craft some shears. With that in mind, they immediately ran back to their house with three pieces of light gray wool in hand. With the bed crafted just after sunset, they knocked out immediately. 

The next few days were a flurry of work; expanding the garden, gathering more and more fish, mining in tiny tunnels underground, and creating a Nether portal a ways away from home.

Upon making sure they had enough tools and armor to survive in the Nether, they jumped straight in. 

And nearly fell off a cliff. 

Of course, the Nether portal they’d built would be placed on the smallest cliff possible. One of the corners wasn’t even touching anything. Jester continued walking back, observing the portal and keeping a close eye on everything around her. She didn’t have enough cobblestone right now to protect herself or her portal from Ghasts.

And then the Netherack gave way under their foot, and they toppled; tools, heavy iron armor, food, everything. Straight into the ocean of magma below.

**Author's Note:**

> Vaguely inspired by Dream SMP and the lore/stories that come from it.


End file.
